When the first smartphones hit the market around 20 years ago, few people could have predicted how quickly they would be assimilated into our everyday lives. From shopping to social networking and house hunting to satellite navigation, the smartphone is now as essential to modern day life for many people as the transistor radio was in the 50s and 60s.

With a high percentage of us now owning a smartphone, it is perhaps not surprising that many jobseekers are beginning the search for a new role on their phones. According to Adam Butler, founder of mobile app Step Ladder, this is why HR professionals need to ensure that they include mobile technology in their recruitment strategy.

Step Ladder is a recently launched mobile app seeking to capitalise on the explosion of smartphone adoption to simplify the recruitment process for both applicants and recruiters. Described as the recruitment industry’s answer to Tinder, Step Ladder is expected to completely change the way in which recruiters engage with available talent. Just as the 50 million active users on Tinder swipe their way through countless profiles in search of the perfect date, Step Ladder aims to connect applicants with organisations seeking to fill vacancies, giving them an easy way to assess each other before deciding whether they would like to pursue a potential working relationship.

Similar to Tinder, jobseekers browsing through advertised vacancies can swipe left when they view a job they are not interested in pursuing or swipe to the right to show interest in a position. Once they have indicated that they would like to know more about a role, the job poster is notified and can in turn review information about the applicant.

Butler makes it clear that the app is not intended to eliminate the need for care and due diligence in the recruitment process but asserts that employers should try to eliminate anything that would make it more difficult for someone to express interest in a vacant position.

Available both from the Apple App Store and for Android users from Google Play, the BETA version of Step Ladder is now available in London and the North West and can be used for free once it has been downloaded.